Monday 27 April 2015

A Nelson Mandela Quote I Will Never Forget

Nelson Mandela had a gift with words and that’s why so many of his quotes are used over and over again. However, there’s one particular quote of his that I haven’t forgotten ever since I read it last year:



This quote has recently resurfaced in my mind partly because of all the xenophobia plaguing our beautiful country and partly because of the aftermath of the Nepal earthquake. However, after analyzing the above mentioned events I’ve come to the conclusion that although this quote is interesting it is not completely accurate.

If you look at the world today we see violence, hatred, jealousy, greed, poaching and gossip as outright enemies and because of this we’re inclined to presume that there aren’t any good, caring people left in the world. But, this isn’t the case.

After escaping crumbling buildings and surviving the initial earthquake many of Nepal’s natives and tourists reached out to help strangers. Literally. They pulled rocks and bricks out of the way to rescue the people underneath. Stories like this one are heartwarming and remind us that although there is a lot of evil in the world there is also plenty good.

So, because there are good people who are doing a lot of good and caring for others, society doesn’t need to re-establish a culture of caring instead we need to encourage it to thrive.

Monday 20 April 2015

Non-Dominant Hand Challenge

Picture from: www.pinterest.com
I used to think I was ambidextrous; even though I couldn't write with my left hand I could do almost everything else. So, when I got the idea for a left-hand day I thought it wouldn't be that difficult. I convinced my friends of this too, and so when the last day of school for this term finally came around most of them were ready for the challenge.

When I woke up I took my watch off and put it on my right hand as a reminder. That process alone took three minutes. But, I put my struggle to get the watch strap on down to lack of practice and guessed I would soon be able to do everything with my left hand. Well, I soon realized that wasn't going to be the case.

I struggled to do up my buttons on my school dress, I struggled to pack my school bag whilst only using my left hand and believe it or not, even eating cereal was very difficult. But, determined not to fail I continued, until I got to my maths lesson. There I picked up my pencil with my left hand and stared at the tricky trigonometrical equation I had to solve. The numbers I could probably manage, but the letters looked difficult. Gulping down my fear I began. And failed miserably. Embarrassed I hunched over my maths book preventing my teacher from seeing it. How had left-handed people managed to permanently use their right hand only a few decades ago? I wondered as I tried again with the second line of the sum. My friends were smiling at me probably grateful they weren't the only ones struggling. But, soon the maths lesson was over and I was using my left hand to pick up my school bag, even that felt foreign.

By the time the headmistress dismissed us, my left hand was aching from all the work it had done so far today but, I couldn't keep a grin off of my face. I'd done it. I'd survived half of the non-dominant hand challenge. And the other half went a lot smoother.

So, at the end of the day, seven of my friends had completed the challenge and although it was hard we all enjoyed it. Now it’s your turn! I challenge you to pick a day, tell all of your friends and then switch hands. It'll be tough but it'll also be a day you'll never forget.

Tuesday 14 April 2015

The Chicken Soup Myth

Those of you who see me every day will know that at the moment my blazer pocket is filled with tissues and lozenges. My voice is deeper and croaky and my nose is so red Rudolph is jealous. Yup, it’s that time of year again and I’m sick. Again. So, whilst I cuddle my blankets and eat yet another bowl of chicken soup I’ve decided to do some research. It turns out, our grandmothers and great grandmothers were right.

Why is Chicken Soup a medicine?

Believe it or not chicken soup might be better than cough medicine. You probably think I’m making this up but I’m not. In fact, scientists have shown that this is the case. The most commonly cited study was conducted by Dr Stephen Rennard of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in the year 2000. After conducting various tests using his wife’s Lithuanian chicken soup recipe he concluded that the soup inhibited the movement of the infection-fighting cells in the body, in turn this reduced upper respiratory cold symptoms. Rennard and his team were unable to determine which ingredient prompted this effect on colds and so they concluded that it was the combination of the chicken and the vegetables in the soup. They also tested a variety of chicken soups bought from the supermarket and they were able to achieve the same results. Another study was carried out by researches in Miami and here they concluded that chicken soup improved the function of the cilia (these tiny hair-like projections in the nose prevent infections from entering the body).
At the same time chicken soup contains the vitamins and proteins we need, it’s warm so it soothes our sore throats and it still tastes good.

Here is the Dr Stephen Rennard’s wife’s chicken soup recipe:

Ingredients:
1   stewing hen or baking chicken weighing approximately 2.5 kg
1 package of chicken wings
3 large onions
1 large sweet potato
3 parsnips
2 turnips
11 to 12 large carrots
5 to 6 celery stems
1 bunch of parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Clean the chicken, put it in a large pot and cover it with cold water. Bring the water to boil.
2. Add the chicken wings, onions, sweet potato, parsnips, turnips and carrots. Boil about 1 and a half hours. Remove fat from the surface as it accumulates.
3. Add the parsley and celery. Cook the mixture about 45 min. longer.
4. Remove the chicken. The chicken is not used further for the soup. (The meat makes excellent chicken parmesan.)
5. Put the vegetables in a food processor until they are chopped fine or pass through a strainer. Both were performed in the present study.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
(Note: This soup freezes well).

If you don't believe me or just want to read more about this then click on the links to the websites I found most helpful:

Tuesday 7 April 2015

A guide to planning the perfect High Tea


A High Tea is a great theme for a number of events though it is mostly used for parties and get-togethers. So if you’re searching for inspiration for your event or if you’re already considering having a High Tea, I have some tips to make the day run smoothly.

A Theme within a Theme:

If you want people to dress up in specific colours or patterns you should set a theme. Here are some options:
o   Pastels (combinations such as light pink, light green, and light purple are quite fun)
o   The Union Jack (aka blue, red and white)
o   Olden day England (You can assign each guest a person to dress up as: either you can all be royals or the birthday girl can be the queen and everyone else can be nobility)
o   Spots and stripes (many people have clothes with patterns on so ask them to wear those)
o   Black and white (this is cool; almost as if you’re stuck in an old-fashioned movie)
o   Mad-hatters (this one is a favourite because it gives your guests and opportunity to mix and match their outfits)

Invitations:

This of course depends on your other theme but just remember that the invitation is the first thing your guests see so it has to set the tone for the day.

Planning Ahead:

Entertainment:

On the actual day you’ll want your guests to have fun, right? So, although there will be a lot of chitter chatter you should probably organise some games as well. Of course the games will depend on the age group but some of my favourites include:
o   Croquet
o   Gaze and Relic
o   This is a very old game that has been played at High Teas for decades. Thankfully it’s not very complicated. All you need to do is set up a tray of items that are related to the theme (e.g. a tiara, wand, glove) and then every person gets about thirty seconds to memorize the items on the tray before they have to write down as many as they can remember.
o   Tea tasting or guess the flavour of tea
o   Blindfold nibbles
o   Some of the guests are blindfolded; they have to eat a variety of small snacks and guess what they are eating.
o   Quizzes (e.g. how well do you know your royals/cosmetics/celebrities)
o   Nail painting game
o   You have a selection of nail polishes that are numbered; you roll the dice and if you get a three then you have to paint one of your fingernails with the nail polish numbered 3.
o   The chocolate game
o   This game is absolutely delicious. If you’ve never played it before you’ve missed out. Basically, you all sit in a circle and take turns rolling the two dice. When you role a double six you have to put on three or more items of clothing (e.g. a hat, scarf and gloves); the other girls and boys continue throwing the dice whilst you quickly change. You then have to cut squares of chocolate using a fork; you can only cut one square at a time. If no one has rolled a double six by then you can eat the square of chocolate and once you’re finished it you can start cutting another one.

Prizes:

Usually High Teas are only for girls or ladies so the prizes should be very girly; however, they can also vary according to the theme. Some fun prizes are: lip glosses, nail polishes, nail stickers …

Food:

All great High Teas have a balanced amount of savoury and sweet treats.
Sweet Treat ideas:

o   Cake
o   Scones
o   Cupcakes
o   Macaroons
o   Shortbread
o   Biscuits
o   Tarts
o   Brownies
Savoury Treat ideas:
o   Miniature sausage roles
o   Samosas
o   Miniature sandwiches
o   Sushi
o   Popcorn

Decorations:


Again this depends on the theme but the basic decorations you should include are: a table cloth, table centre (e.g. a vase), serviettes and lots of flowers.

HAVE FUN!!!!